A Study on the Protective Effect of Propofol Pretreatment against Cerebral Ischemia-reperfusion Injury

Objective: To study the protective effect of propofol pretreatment against cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury in gerbils;to explore the duration and degree of the protection;and to study the optimal administration time window of propofol pretreatment for the protective effects,so as to provide theoretical basis for optional clinical therapy.Methods: 66 mongolian gerbils of both sexes,three months aged,and weighing 45~75g were randomly divided into: control group(A),pretreatment and sham operation group(B),ischemia-reperfusion group(C),and propofol groups(D-F).Propofol 100mg/kg was given intraperitoneally(ip) 12h(group D),24h(group E),and 48h(group F) before ischemia.And then,each group except group A was divided into two sub-groups: the immediately executing groups(X1) and the delayed executing groups(X2,executed in 7 days).There were 6 gerbils in each group.The gerbils in groups C-F were anesthetized with pentobarbital 36mg/kg ip,and their bilateral common carotid arteries were exposed and clamped for 20min.and then,unclamped for 50min for reperfusion.The animal bilateral common carotid arteries in groups A and B were exposed but not clamped.The animals of groups X1 were then decapitated and their forebrain cerebral cortex were removed for determination of ET,CGRP and MDA contents,and the activities of SOD and GSH-px.In addition,examination of the cellular ultrastructure was done with electronic microscopy.Results: In propofol groups,SOD and GSH-px activities were significantly higher than those in ischemia group(P0.05);In propofol group E and group F,CGRP contents were significantly higher than those in group C(P0.05).In propofol groups,MDA levels were significantly lower than those in group C(P0.05);The destruction of neuron ultrastructure was more slight in propofol groups than in ischemia groups.The differences between the results of groups X1 and X2 were not significant.Conclusions: Propofol pretreatment at 12-48 hours before cerebral ischemia-reperfusion has protective effects of different degrees against cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury,and the earlier the use of propofol,the better the protective results are.